Want to read Slashdot from your mobile device? Point it at m.slashdot.org and keep reading!

 


Forgot your password?
Close
typodupeerror
×

Shake Hands with the Zero Tension Mouse 169

Posted by Zonk from the mousing-with-a-pile-of-goo dept.
ThinSkin writes "Given its shape and ability to cup your hand, the Zero Tension Mouse can be moved around without bending the wrist or moving the fingers, while also keeping the hand in a vertical position and the arm in a more ergonomic neutral position. ExtremeTech reviews the Zero Tension Mouse and, although acknowledging it as 'funny looking,' concludes that it amounts to a whole lot of worth for those who need it, or those who want to take preventative measures against RSI and related ailments."
This discussion has been archived. No new comments can be posted.

Shake Hands with the Zero Tension Mouse More

Shake Hands with the Zero Tension Mouse

Comments Filter:
  • Make it RF or BT and I'll consider it.

    • Re:It's corded? (Score:3, Interesting)

      by ZorbaTHut ( 126196 )
      You know, I used to buy all cordless devices.

      About a year ago I realized I wasn't using the cordless feature at all. At work I simply trapped the cord under a monitor and the cord never got in the way. At home I sat in front of the computer. Why bother with cordless? 99% of the time it wasn't a benefit.

      About three months ago I got killed in City of Heroes because my batteries ran out at the wrong moment.

      I'm not replacing my mouse and keyboard yet. But next time I need new peripherals, they're going to be co
      • For me the benefit of cordless mice has been that there is no cord to break.

        When I used corded mice, I never found the cord really got in my way to the point that I was annoyed by it, but the last 6 corded mice I had all broke where the cord connected to the mouse.

        Cordless mice obviously don't suffer that problem.

        YMMV, but I won't ever buy a corded mouse again.

        Keyboards on the other hand ... I'm with you there... mine never leaves the desk... whats the appeal of a cordless keyboard? (outside of a multimedia
        • Stop using the mouse with both hands.

          How the hell do you break the cord? I've swung a first-gen microsoft optimouse over my head in a circle and it only broke [the mouse not the cord] when it hit a concrete wall.

          You have to be gaming "really hard" to break a corded mouse.

          Tom
          • How the hell do you break the cord? I've swung a first-gen microsoft optimouse over my head in a circle and it only broke [the mouse not the cord] when it hit a concrete wall.

            Well, I didn't break the cord right off. I simply broke a wire inside, or at the solder point. I'm not sure what the issue was but I suspect it was getting snagged and then breaking on the "down pull".

            It started responding intermittently dropping out everynow and then, and wiggling the cable woul cause the "new hardware detected" bubbl
        • whats the appeal of a cordless keyboard?

          They're great for sniffing passwords!

      • I like cordless devices because they reduce cable clutter. The battery situation, can be solved by rechargeable batteries. You could still run out in the middle of a game, which can be solved with a recharging dock, at the cost of more cables.
        • I've got a recharging dock for my mouse, and spare batteries for my keyboard. For the mouse I mostly forget to use it, but that rarely becomes a problem since the battery life is long enough. For the keyboard, sure, I can go swap batteries . . . and did . . . and in the minute it took me to find the batteries and swap them in, my character was killed.

          Doesn't really solve the problem - and it's kind of annoying, why not just use a corded keyboard?
      • While it is admittedly a small factor for most of us, I suspect that people with severe RSI will tell you that that little cord makes a big difference when the pain radiating up your arm makes it feel like it is plugged into a wall socket.

        On the other hand, I have pounded the stuffing out of my 6-year-old corded Intellimouse Explorer and it is still performing absolutely flawlessly. I suspect that has something to do with the fact that it is built like a tank, and this probably is a big reason why I don't
        • I feel that if you have "pain radiating up your arm that makes it feel like it is plugged into a wall socket", you have bigger issues to worry about than whether your mouse has a cord or not.

          Perhaps, for example, it's time to try one of the weirder ergonomic devices, or come up with a new input system . . . but not remove the cord and keep suffering.
          • Agreed, but that wasn't really the point I was trying to make :-) Just that a seemingly minor issue to you or I could be a colossal obstacle to someone who suffers from fatigue, and ultimately this device is meant to rectify/prevent these RSI. I think the cordless mice are silly, but I'm sure you have at some point used a mouse where it felt like the cord was resisting your movements (I know I have). To someone suffering from carpal tunnel syndrome this minor resistance could be the proverbial straw on t

  • Snake oil (Score:5, Insightful)

    by keesh ( 202812 ) on Thursday July 27, 2006 @06:51PM (#15795319) Homepage
    Somehow I can't help thinking that all these devices that supposedly "help prevent" "RSI" are the modern equivalent of snake oil... Would be nice if products had to undergo proper medical testing (done by real scientists, that is, not quack doctors with a degree in "office therapy") before they could make such claims...

    • Re:Snake oil (Score:5, Funny)

      by Anonymous Coward on Thursday July 27, 2006 @06:55PM (#15795340)
      I've said it before, I'll say it again: the primary cause of RSI is masturbation, not mice!

    • Re:Snake oil (Score:3, Informative)

      by omeomi ( 675045 )
      Somehow I can't help thinking that all these devices that supposedly "help prevent" "RSI" are the modern equivalent of snake oil

      I agree...there's already a similar device on the market (a mouse with a vertical bit that you grip like a joystick) that I tried a little while back. It didn't help my RSI at all...in fact, it was a bit worse than a regular mouse. I find 2 things help me. One is frequent exercise, and the other is switching mouse hands/positions. I go back and forth between left and right mous

      • ... I go back and forth between left and right mousing (cordless mice are great for this), and sometimes I use a trackpad, which seems to help. Vertical mice don't help me much at all.

        And this one would help you even less. It's hard-coded for righties and there is no southpaw version.

        This article [rsi-relief.com] recommends alternating a mouse between left & right hands to avoid RSI. I'm too entrenched in my mono chirality ways to learn to do that (I'd give my left arm to be ambidexterous). On the other hand,

      • I fount that pushing my keyboard away from me and using the open space for a cordless mouse
        works a lot better, it feels like a more natural position than having my arm outstretched to use the
        mouse to the right end of the keyboard. When I'm not using the mouse, it sits just below the spacebar
        in the open area between myself and the keyboard.

        It took a little bit of time to get used to the front of the mouse pointing to the left, but now
        its just natural, I even game with it like that. It's also a shorter motio

    • Horrible to use with a keyboard (Score:5, Insightful)

      by EmbeddedJanitor ( 597831 ) on Thursday July 27, 2006 @07:24PM (#15795501)
      I can see that this might work for gamers or whatever who just click their whole lives away. For a lot of us (programmers etc), mouse movements are interspersed with keyboard actions, so you need a pointing device that is close to the keyboard. My favourite it the cursor pad, a regular mouse is OK too. For a vertical orientation input device you need to make larger movements and keep rolling your wrist as you move from keyboard to mouse. Can't see this being efficient or easy.
      • i don't do a lot of programming, but i do use the keyboard a lot more than most, i have to suggest using a buckling spring (clicky) keyboard, unicomp sells 'em new for around $80 for a basic model and i am loving mine. My hands,fingers, and wrists never get sore anymore and i can type faster due to not having to slam full speed into the bottom of the fram to ensure a keypress registers.

    • Re:Snake oil (Score:2, Interesting)

      by jtseng ( 4054 )
      I have found on occasion that I have had to rest my mouse hand because I couldn't keep it on the mouse anymore; it would be too uncomfortable. I even tried to use the mouse on a near-vertical plane because I found out (along with some other people apparently) that the vertical position is more comfortable; obviously a vertical plane is not a viable solution. Although the price point is too high for me for this product, I can totally see how this can help people. I don't think it's snake oil.

  • Funny looking (Score:3, Funny)

    by mobby_6kl ( 668092 ) on Thursday July 27, 2006 @06:52PM (#15795325)
    Yes, it does look like something the goatse guy might shove up his ass.

  • Well (Score:4, Interesting)

    by ShooterNeo ( 555040 ) on Thursday July 27, 2006 @06:53PM (#15795328)
    I see this as a legitimate product. It doesn't take a medical degree or a huge budget to see that if RSI is caused by using a particular joint, avoiding that joint avoids the problem. You do not need to move your wrist at all to use this mouse. A device built from a sound principle, no snake oil involved.

    • Re:Well (Score:1)

      by kfg ( 145172 ) *
      You do not need to move your wrist at all to use this mouse. A device built from a sound principle, no snake oil involved.

      Why does my shoulder hurt?

      KFG

    • Re:Well (Score:2, Informative)

      by randomaxe ( 673239 )
      Oh, come on. Anything you can sell is "a legitimate product". If I drop a deuce in a box, and you are willing to give me any amount of money for it, congratulations, you have just legitimized my personal excrement as a product.

      So yes, this is a legitimate product. That doesn't make it legitimate as a tool for RSI prevention, however. That's not to say that it necessarily doesn't help, just that nobody has proven that it does. And there's the rub.

      Besides, wrist movement is not the sole cause of RSI
    • If you are moving the mouse, then there has to be SOME joint on your body that is bending. I have a feeling that moving the mouse by bending your elbows and shoulders all day would feel a lot less natural.

    • Re:Well (Score:3, Insightful)

      by Eideewt ( 603267 )
      But it's not caused by using the joint. Joints are meant to be used. It's caused by *misusing* the joint, which means you're stressing it in a way that it can't handle. That's why it's a repetetive *strain* injury rather than a repetetive motion injury. Simply immobilizing it may work, but I think that's a bit of an overreaction unless the damage is already so severe that any movement exacerbates it. A better approach would be to think about how you could change your movement to avoid stressing the joint. T

  • Radical Ergonomics (Score:4, Insightful)

    by LaNMaN2000 ( 173615 ) on Thursday July 27, 2006 @06:53PM (#15795329) Homepage
    Like the Dvorak keyboard, ergonomic innovations that force people to relearn basic skills are bound for failure irrespective of the upside. Companies should instead develop ergonomic enhancements that integrate into the existing workspace.
    • It doesn't move any buttons except the scroll wheel. It looks to me to be very natural.

      I went from using a flat keyboard to a MS natural pro, and OMG I love it. I think that RADICAL changes won't work as a business model. But this isn't so extreme.

      The reason Vertical keyboards won't work is because people still look at their keys when they type. Soon, a vertical keyboard may be common as the population ages, and everyone who's anyone will know how to touch type.
    • "...that integrate into the existing workspace." That assumes that you can get there from here. The modern office is designed for sitting for hours on end. The human body is not.

      What do you do when the "basic skills" that people already know are the problem?

      Enhancing the existing workspace sounds like a prescription for a bunch of incremental tweaks that cumulatively cost a lot but don't really do anything.
    • While I agree fully with what you say, I don't see this mouse as being a radical departure from the traditional mouse. It's not like that god-awful trackball contraption that won't stay dead.
      • Trackballs won't stay dead because they're awesome. I got the Kensington Expert thing that people were talking about elsewhere in this thread, and I love it.
      • what, you don't like centipede?

        Yeah, that's about all they're good for on a desktop.

        Now, they're a pretty good input device for a laptop... But I'm pretty used to a trackpad these days.

        I just don't ever want to have to touch one of those stupid keyboard joysticks ever again. Those things are torturous to use.
    • ### Like the Dvorak keyboard, ergonomic innovations that force people to relearn basic skills are bound for failure irrespective of the upside.

      Are they? Or is it just that nobody has ever really tried hard enough? I mean Dvorak is ok, but its not that much better then Qwerty, since the underlying keyboard itself is still the same, so its not a big suprise that it failed, buying new hardware (refering to 1940 or so when Dvorak layout was born) and doing new training for a rather minimal improvment just wasn'
    • For someone with horrible Repetitive Stress Disorder or Carpal Tunnel, couldn't the process of relearning be a therapy in itself?

    • The Dvorak keyboard was designed to improve typing speed not the ergonomics of your standard QWERTY keyboard, as they are identical except for the key arrangement. I think the only people who would buy something like this are those that are already suffering RSI, few would use one in a precautionary manner.
  • ...worthless
  • I have my mouse setting at such a speed, that I can hold my wrist supported, and just move the
    mouse with my fingers, and yet reach all over my desktop. Only gaming demands more "alive" movements.
  • From article:

    Given that computers have become so common at both work and in leisure pursuits, some long-time users are experiencing a gradual build-up of pain attributed by RSI, or Repetitive Stress Injury.

    For me, chock up the RSI to those "leisurely pursuits." The only way this thing could improve over my wireless is if it was easy to use ambidextrously and dispensed lotion...

  • Easier solution (Score:3, Interesting)

    by Stormwatch ( 703920 ) <`moc.liamtoh' `ta' `oarigogirdor'> on Thursday July 27, 2006 @06:58PM (#15795359) Homepage
    Buy a friggin' graphics tablet!
  • It's simply lack of circulation due to incomplete motion. Just get one of those hand gripper thingies and squeeze it about 20 times every half hour. Solved.

  • Already done... (Score:5, Informative)

    by stmfreak ( 230369 ) <[moc.liamg] [ta] [kaerfmts]> on Thursday July 27, 2006 @07:13PM (#15795438) Journal
    ... It's called a Logitech TrackMan Marble FX. Keeps the pressure on the outer side of your hand and away from the carpal tunnel. I bought three for ~$50 each back in the day. Last I checked, the were going on eBay for ~$100. Too bad they're discontinued.
    • Try the Trackman Marble that you roll with your thumb instead. They still make it (just checked) and I have been using one for well over 10 years. I'm only on my second one. You may hate it at first but stick with it for a day to get the feel of it then you'll be in mouse heaven. And it definitely helps the mouse syndromes not to mention that marble technology virtually eliminates mouse jumping on the screen as you are probably already aware.

      BTW I do not work for Logitech. :-)
      • Try the Trackman Marble that you roll with your thumb instead.

        Does anyone else get a sore thumb from these? I managed to get pretty accurate with one, but had to quit using it after a couple of weeks... it just hurt too much.

        Switched to a Kensington Expert trakball, have never looked back. It even has enough buttons for Missile Command :)

    • I too am a big fan of the Marble FX, the logos and all writing are long gone but the mouse is still going strong. Periodic cleaning is the only thing it needed. Probably one of the better investments I made.

  • funny looking? (Score:4, Interesting)

    by TheSHAD0W ( 258774 ) on Thursday July 27, 2006 @07:13PM (#15795440) Homepage
    I remember seeing the first boxy mice and thinking they were funny looking. "What's the use of a keypad with only two buttons on it? What? You're supposed to MOVE it?"

    And yes, I did have to walk to school when I was a child. Uphill. Both ways.

  • It's not new.... (Score:5, Interesting)

    by Yuan-Lung ( 582630 ) on Thursday July 27, 2006 @07:25PM (#15795507)
    A person with wrist problems in our office has been using a joystick-like mouse [3m.com] for a long time. It's hard to use for me, and gives me a sore elbow. Maybe I am using it wrong, but after having learned how to protect my wrist using a conventional mouse, I would rather not start over and having to learn to protect my elbow from a new product that doesn't offer any real advantage.

  • Mmmmm-kay... (Score:4, Insightful)

    by jpellino ( 202698 ) on Thursday July 27, 2006 @07:28PM (#15795523)
    How many of thes things have we seen that are supposed to put your hand in a more natural position?
    They all end up at Big Lots for $9 after six months...
    From the looks of that scroll wheel, it's going to be a banner year for RSI - grab the top of a bottle and roll your thumb straight back and forth over the top like the pictures show for the scroll wheel. If you can do that for more than a minute, you're not put together right.
    • I guess I'm not put together right, then (yes, I was bored enough to try this). It's doable, but I'll give you that it could get damned uncomfortable in a hurry. This is why I like having scroll buttons in addition to the wheel (ala my MX700). If I need to scroll through a long list, I have the buttons. If it's just a quick scroll or switching weapons in a game, the wheel is there as well.

  • Sounds familiar... (Score:5, Funny)

    by Anonymous Coward on Thursday July 27, 2006 @07:29PM (#15795527)
    This big input device allows the hand to fully rest on the unit in a more natural "thumbs-up" or "handshake" position. You fingers wrap around the mouse handle...

    Yep... that's sounds like a hand position that most slashdotters are quite familiar with! Hmm... I wonder what the inventor was doing when he first got the idea for this mouse?

    • IIRC the first such mouse was designed by a Norwegian company. (The mouse looks exactly like the one 3M makes, so I guess they licensed the design.) Anyway, to lend some credit to your excellent observation, I can add that "mouse" in Norwegian is in fact a common slang for the Holy Grail of Objects Unattainable to the Average Slashdot User: the female reproductive organ*. Taking this into account, it's hardly a surprise that it was invented in Norway.

      BTW, this gives us the euphemism "ergonomically mousing

  • Have One (Score:3, Informative)

    by EEBaum ( 520514 ) on Thursday July 27, 2006 @07:31PM (#15795540) Homepage
    I bought one of these over a year ago, as part of my tendonitis-triggered moratorium on regular mice. I used it pretty extensively until I got a Kensington Expert Mouse Trackball, which I find gives a better match for my needs while maintaining good ergonomics. I still pack this one with me whenever I'm going somewhere (e.g. campus computer labs) that has nasty mice in it. It's pretty nice in my experience (i.e. it doesn't make my tendonitis go crazy like regular mice), though the motions required are a bit odd in its own way, leaving me to just put my hand on top of it every now and then and use it like a really tall, funkily-buttoned, regular mouse.
    • The Kensington Expert Trackball is the best thing for RSI in my experience. The large ball and scroll ring allow it to be used in dozens of different had positions which negates the "repetitive stress" part of RSI.

      Kensington is also a great company. They honors their five year warrantee for me three years in when I (ab)used the trackball far too much and broke one of the little floater things inside. (Note: It is not a basketball hoop.) Without even any proof of ownership and without me sending mine back, t
      • which negates the "repetitive stress" part of RSI.
        So you're left with the injury?
      • Oddly enough, I find that using the Kensington Expert Mouse made my hands hurt, whereas using a regular mouse (symmetrical Logitec MX310 at home for my left hand, and an MX500 at work for my right hand) gives me no pain at all.

        I eventually had to sell the trackball. I simply could not use it for more than a few minutes at a time.
        • Like any new input device, it takes some getting used to. At first it made my arm rather tired, but this is just because I was using muscles I had never really used before for such a long-term coordinated task. After week or two it was fine and has been fine for several years. Still, if you were having pain after just a few minutes, it is quite possible you were already suffering from some form of RSI and hence could not adapt to the new device. Or, perhaps we're just different. It does definitely take time

  • Looks just about perfect to me. (Score:5, Insightful)

    by Kaenneth ( 82978 ) on Thursday July 27, 2006 @07:34PM (#15795550) Journal
    I have severe, very severe, as in on federal disability for 5 years, $1500/month medications, arthritis. The fingers of my right hand are turning to the left (Ulnar deviation), and the base joint of my index finger is basically destroyed (subluxation). I developed 'sausage fingers', where the joints swelled so much and so fast I got stretch marks on my fingers. 4 doctors, one of whom was in a wheelchair determined my arthritis bad enough to make me unable to work. Right now with the medications, I'm working, but with the knowledge that I'm slowly destroying my hands.

    I looked at some of the previous ergo mice, and they mostly have the flaw mentioned in the article of having to grip the mouse to push it away (up the screen), I have difficulty with doorknobs, bottlecaps, and steering wheels, gripping is a problem. I also used to work in the Microsoft Hardware (mouse/keyboard) group testing device drivers, where I was working at the time I suddenly developed arthritis (genetic cause, not from work), so I do have some knowledge about pointing devices.

    This mouse is basically exactly what the physical therapists described as ideal; hand in the hand-shake position, not needing to bend the wrist, with the arm relaxed. and at $80 it's not bad compared to some ergo devices. It's not a 'quack' device, it's designed to help a real, legitimate medical/work issue. If it's lightweight and Optical (I hate mechanical mice so very very much), I'll buy several. Another few years of work would repay the cost a few thousand times over..
    • It sounds like this mouse would be perfect for you, since you can't grip things, but I question how much utility it has for a person who is either trying to avoid injury in the first place or who is combating a minor RSI.
    • this one is meant for kids but it looks like it would also be pretty good to use with limited use of your hands

      http://www.askergoworks.com/shopexd.asp?id=930 [askergoworks.com]

    • This mouse is basically exactly what the physical therapists described as ideal; hand in the hand-shake position, not needing to bend the wrist, with the arm relaxed. and at $80 it's not bad compared to some ergo devices. It's not a 'quack' device, it's designed to help a real, legitimate medical/work issue. If it's lightweight and Optical (I hate mechanical mice so very very much), I'll buy several. Another few years of work would repay the cost a few thousand times over..

      One issue I see with this mouse is

  • At a press conference introducing the "radical" Microsoft curved mouse, Bill Gates talked about how 7 million dollars was spent just on ergonomics.

    Then a reporter asked about the availability of a left-handed version. After a two second pause, the audience was told that it works either way.

    • Then a reporter asked about the availability of a left-handed version. After a two second pause, the audience was told that it works either way.

      In all seriousness... does anyone make a leftie version of the curved style of mouse? I've made it a point to ask the sales people at places like Microcenter or CompUSA, and they always give me a blank look... I end up having to physically demonstrate why the standard ones don't work left-handed ("Here, you try it").

  • "Cootie" keys for the telegrapher.. (Score:3, Interesting)

    by the_rajah ( 749499 ) * on Thursday July 27, 2006 @07:51PM (#15795631) Homepage
    Telegraph and wireless operators had similar RSI problems going back, probably at least, to the 1860's. They called it having a "glass arm". The JH Bunnell Double Speed key, also known as a side-swiper, was patented in 1888 to help solve this problem and was sold well into the 1920's when it was replaced by semi-automatic keys known as "bugs" (first patent 1892). The operation of the side-swiper was such that the motion was side to side instead of up and down. There is a contact on either side of the armature or lever so pressing the lever either way made the contact. There was no attempt to automate the dots as the later semi-automatic keys did. You can find example pictures online by searching for "Cootie key" or "side-swiper" key. I have one of the early Bunnell cooties in my telegraph apparatus collection.
  • Of course, for us more hardcore hackers, we have the ultimate ergonomic solution: no mouse (I swear GUIs were sent from hell to make us suffer).

  • Switch sides.. (Score:2, Informative)

    by SevenHands ( 984677 )
    If injury is caused due to mouse utilization via the right hand, use the mouse with your left hand for a while. This would give the injury time to heal. This is something I tried a few years back and although there's a bit of a learning curve (I was sloppy and slow at moving the pointer at first) I don't even think about it now. My girlfriend also tried this approach due to tension in her right shoulder.
  • The other day I tried a standard, rectangular, old school, non-ergonomic keyboard, and I found I could type much faster and more accurately than with my fancy split key thing. Not sure what would happen if I used it for long periods of time, but I might actually try switching back. Perhaps I was suckered by some ergonomic snake oil.
    • Why did you start using an ergo keyboard?

      Personally, I use one all the time and for long coding sessions they are essential for preventing pain in my left wrist. I can type equally quickly on both, but when I use my laptop keyboard the discomfort builds up pretty quickly.
      • I've been lucky to never have problems. But I've used an ergo keyboard for years though. So maybe it actually has prevented problems. But I learned on a standard keyboard, which is probably why I'm still a little faster on those.
  • Just reading the article I can already feel my shoulder aching.

    --Rob

  • No thanks (Score:4, Insightful)

    by Eideewt ( 603267 ) on Thursday July 27, 2006 @08:52PM (#15795864)
    I'm really not convinced of this thing's utility. It's assuming that since a neutral "handshake" position puts the least strain on a person's wrist, it must be best to hold it in that position all the time. Joints are made to be used, so it's silly to decide that immobilizing them will solve the problem. I suspect that staying immobile too long is a bad idea. The real problem is, like the acronym says, repetetive *strain*. Learning to use your joints in the way they work best will get you farther than locking them in place.

    Guitarists, for example play for long stretches at a time, but most (decent ones) don't end up hurting themselves. Anyone who's played the guitar can tell you that it's not really an ergonomically constructed device. Why don't we hurt ourselves when we twist our wrists backwards and make strange movements very quickly, while office workers manage to destroy their wrists pushing buttons and scooting a mouse around? First of all, musicians practice for hours to figure out how not to hurt their wrists. Second, musicians don't usually play for eight hours straight. My advice to anyone who feels an RSI coming on is to take breaks, but also to examine very closely how you operate these devices. Are you bending your wrist funny to move the mouse, or reaching with a single finger rather than moving your whole hand when typing?

    Basically, it's okay to move joints within their range of motion all you like, but every joint has positions in which it can take some stress, and positions in which it can't. Everyone has been told to "always lift with your legs." You need to know similar rules for other joints. You stress a joint whenever you move it out of its safest position then try to exert force through it. For keyboarding, this means reaching with a finger or bending your wrists back then trying to press a key. Keeping your wrists straight and moving your whole hand when you reach for a key is the way to go. Also, making sure never to stretch your hand out when chording is a good idea. Left shift for right hand keys, and vice versa. For mousing, putting your whole hand on the mouse and bending your wrist to move it strains you unduly. A better solution is to hold it with your fingertips and use every joint you can to distribute the action. The fingertips and wrist for fine motion, and the rest of the arm for gross motions. It's also helpful to rotate your hands a little closer to the handshake position, for both mousing and keyboarding.

    Of course, some people have already sustained joint damage, and may need to immobilize the joint until it heals. After that, better mousing technique should prevent further trouble, unless you're prone to injury for some other reason.

    IANAPT, but I am a guy who types a lot, mouses a lot, and plays a lot of musical instruments, but has never sustained an RSI (except once when I played with a noisemaker for too long). I attribute that to my amazing technique.

    • Re:No thanks (Score:2, Informative)

      by bampot ( 814270 )
      The difference is that with a guitar you're not playing the same 2 or 3 notes hundreds or thousands of times every day as you do with a mouse. RSI is all to do with the *exact* same movement repeated (hundreds) of thousands of times.

      I ran into some RSI tendonitis problems a couple of years back with my mouse hand, which involved being off work for a while. Our HSE advisor got me to try a few different devices, one of which was a similarly styled "joystick" mouse, so this is nothing new. However it didn't

  • From the manufacturer's web site [zerotensionmouse.com]:

    Zero Tension Mouse(TM) (available only in right-handed models)
    (my emphasis)

    It's always the same: you get these beautifully sculpted mice/trackballs/joysticks and they are only good for right handers.

  • the relationship between workers and their environments

    If you have to touch it while you're working, it's "ergonomic" by definition.

    Ask for the results of their clinical study. When they can't give them to you, realize that it's cheaper to correct your bad habits than it is to buy their unproven junk. It's a technique that has the added advantage of working ant any computer you sit down at, not just the one with your overpriced peripheral.

    Most computer users with a hand or wrist RSI got it doing something o
  • It looks like a joystick. Having used a joystick as a mouse replacement when I had an Amiga, I can tell you it is not very practical for aiming and moving.
  • When I use a mouse, the majority of the pointer movement is controlled by my fingertips. Can anyone out there comment on the fine motor control of the large muscles that would be required to move essentially your entire lower arm around? It looks like it would be a lot of bicep, tricep, and shoulder muscles. Is the device less sensitive, so that larger movements (and less precision) are required? Or can those large muscles be taught the fine control necessary for a pointer device?
  • This is like going back to the big crayons that you hold in a fist. You completely loose all fine motor control when you have your wrist elevated by these mice. A trackball would be a better solution for RSI sufferers.

Slashdot Top Deals

What is research but a blind date with knowledge? -- Will Harvey

Close